Nintex has provided detailed installation guides for all their products, so I hear you asking: what value is he adding here?

 Over my numerous installations of Nintex products, I find that even when I follow the Installation Guide's steps, I still run into issues, either during the installation process, or later when my clients start using Nintex heavily. In this post I will focus on installing Nintex Workflow and Forms 2013. I will combine the steps from the official Nintex Guide, with the solutions for the issues I have seen in a number of different environments.

 At the end of this article, I added references to a number of resources that you can check out, if you are interested in more details. Have questions or suggestions to improve this guide? I would love to hear from you in the Comments section.

 Let's get started...

1) Nintex Workflow and Forms 2013 Installation Prerequisites

1. Nintex Workflow 2013 license and Nintex Forms 2013 license generated for the web-front-end server(s)

1. The license must be generated for the web front end server(s), not the application server(s) or any other farm servers, or else the farm will be considered unlicensed to use Nintex.
2. The SharePoint web-front-ends (WFEs) are the servers hit first thing by the user, and
3. The WFEs must have the Microsoft SharePoint Foundation Web Application SharePoint service running.

2. The executable files for Nintex Workflow 2013.

1. The executable files can be downloaded from Nintex Community’s Product Downloads section:

            Product Downloads 

   b. You will need to create a Nintex Community account, to access the Product Downloads section.

3. Access to SharePoint's install account

4. The install account must be a local admin on all the farm servers.

5. The install account must be allowed to run PowerShell scripts.

2) Nintex Workflow 2013 Installation, Configuration and Test

1. Ensure the environment is ready for installing Nintex Workflow:

   a. Ensure the following Windows services are running on all the farm servers:

• SharePoint Administration
• SharePoint Timer Service

   b. Ensure the following SharePoint service is running on the WFE(s) and stop it on the non-WFE(s):

• Microsoft SharePoint Foundation Workflow Timer Service

   c. Ensure the install account can run PowerShell scripts

1. In SharePoint PowerShell, as admin, run: Get-spfarm, and make sure it returns your SharePoint configuration database name with the status set to Online.

   d. Ensure the install account is local admin on all farm servers

   e. Ensure antivirus software is disabled on all farm servers

   f. On the application server hosting central admin, where the exe file to run, disable User Account Control (UAC), then         restart the server.

1. Open up the Windows Start screen
2. Search for UAC
3. Click on “Settings” in the right side bar
4. Click on “Change User Account Control settings”               

   v. Move the slider all the way to the bottom, then hit “OK”

2. Install Nintex Workflow:

   a. On the application server hosting central admin, run the installer exe file.

   b. When the installation is complete, deploy the Nintex Workflow solutions.

1. To deploy the solutions:

                  1. Go to SharePoint Central Administration -> System Settings -> Manage farm solutions

                  2. Click on the solution's name, then Deploy Solution

                  3. For globally deployed solutions, deploy the solution to the Central Administration web application and all

                      the content web applications.

            ii. Sequence of deploy: 

      1. NintexWorkflow2013Core.wsp

      2. NintexWorkflow2013.wsp

      3. Nintexworkflow2013enterprisefeatures.wsp (if you have an Enterprise license)

3. Configure Nintex Workflow:

   a. Import the Nintex Workflow 2013 license:

         Central Administration -> Nintex Workflow Management -> Licensing

   b. Configure database for Nintex Workflow

         Central Administration -> Nintex Workflow Management -> Database setup

         i. Create a Nintex configuration database

               1. In the Configuration Database section, click Create.

               2. On the Create configuration database page, review the default settings.

               3. Update any property if needed, then hit OK.

         ii. Add content database

               1. In the Content Databases section, click Add content database.

               2. In the Add content database page, review the default settings.

               3. Update any property if needed, then hit OK.

    c. Activate the web applications

         Central Administration -> Nintex Workflow Management -> Web application activation

         i. Select “All content web applications”

         ii. Then hit activate

   d. Enable actions

         Central Administration -> Nintex Workflow Management -> Manage allowed actions

         i. Select the workflow actions that you would like to allow

         ii. Then hit OK

   e. Configure LazyApproval

         i. Configure SharePoint incoming Email

               https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc262947(v=office.15).aspx

• After configuring SharePoint incoming Email, make sure that it’s working by creating a SharePoint list item through sending an e-mail to the list.

         ii. Configure Nintex Workflow email settings

               Central Administration -> Nintex Workflow Management -> Global Settings

1. Under Email settings,
   1. Outbound SMTP Server: enter the URL used for outgoing mail in your SharePoint farm.
      1. The Outbound SMTP Server can be found at: Central Administration ->System Settings -> Configure outgoing e-mail settings
   2. From Address Example: admin@myenvironment.com
   3. Reply To Address Example: lazyapproval@mail.myenvironment.com
2. Hit OK.

         iii. Enable LazyApproval

               Central Administration -> Nintex Workflow Management ->LazyApproval settings

1. Click Enable / Disable LazyApproval for the current server farm.
2. LazyApproval via email: select “enabled”
3. Fill-in the Email alias field – example: “lazyapproval”

   f. IISReset on all farm servers

   g. Activate the following site collection feature on the designated site collections:

         Nintex Workflow 2013

   h. Activate the following site features on the designated sites:

         Nintex Workflow 2013

         Nintex Workflow 2013 Enterprise Reporting

   i. Install the Nintex Workflow Scheduler timer job to any web application that is not Central Administration, and remove

      it from the Central Admin web application.

1. In Windows Command Prompt:
   1. cd "C:Program FilesCommon Filesmicrosoft sharedWeb Server Extensions15BIN"
   2. NWAdmin.exe -o InstallTimerJob -job ScheduledWorkflows -url WEB_APP_URL
   3. NWAdmin.exe -o UninstallTimerJob -job ScheduledWorkflows
2.  Note:
   1. The Nintex Workflow Scheduler timer job must run on ONLY one web application that is not the Central Administration (CA) web application.
   2. If the Nintex Workflow Scheduler timer job runs on more than one web application that is not CA, the scheduled workflows will run more than once per the schedule.
   3. If the Nintex Workflow Scheduler timer job runs only on the CA web application, the scheduled workflows will not run per the schedule.

   j.  Enable UAC, disabled in step 2.1.f above.

   k. Enable the antivirus software, disabled in step 2.1.e above.

   l. Restart the server

4. Test Nintex Workflow:

      a. Make sure that you see LazyApproval in the Flexi task action.

      b. Design, publish and run a workflow that has a LazyApproval-enabled flexi task. Make sure that you can           approve/reject the task by replying to the task’s notification.

      c. Design, publish and run a workflow that has a pause action of 5 minutes. Make sure that the workflow completes

          in less than 10 minutes.

      d. Schedule a workflow. Make sure that the workflow runs only once and per the schedule.

3) Nintex Forms 2013 Installation, Configuration and Test

   a. Install Nintex Forms:

1. On a front-end server, run the installer exe file.
2. When the installation is complete, deploy Nintex Forms solutions:

   iii. To deploy the solutions:

                  1. Go to SharePoint Central Administration -> System Settings -> Manage farm solutions

                  2. Click on the solution's name, then Deploy Solution

                  3. For globally deployed solutions, deploy the solution to the Central Administration web application and all

                      the content web applications.

• Sequence of deploy:

1. NintexForms2013Core.wsp
2. NintexForms2013.wsp

b. Configure Nintex Forms:

      i. Import the Nintex Forms 2013 license

            Central Administration -> Nintex Forms Management -> Licensing

      ii. Create the Nintex Forms database

            Central Administration -> Nintex Forms Management -> Manage database

               1. Review the default settings.

               2. Update any property if needed, then hit OK.

      iii. Activate the Nintex Forms feature on the required web applications

            Central Administration -> Application Management -> Manage web applications

1. Select the required web application where Nintex Forms will be used
2. Click “Manage features” in the top ribbon
3. Activate the Nintex Forms feature

            4. Hit OK

               Note: wait for 5 minutes before activating the feature on a different web application.

   iv. Activate the following site collection features on the designated site collections, in the following order:

         1. Nintex Forms Prerequisites Feature

         2. Nintex Forms for Nintex Workflow

         3. Nintex Forms for SharePoint List Forms

d. Test Nintex Forms:

   a. Design and publish a Nintex Form.

   b. Make sure that the form publishes successfully and your updates were applied successfully.

That's it. Happy Nintexing!

References:

• Official Nintex Workflow and Form 2013 Installation Guide: Installing Nintex Workflow 2013 and Nintex Forms 2013
• New install - What you need to know: New Install - What you need to know 
• Scheduled Workflows configuration: Scheduled workflows and the Nintex Workflow Scheduler timer job